Dusk Falls—ScorchClan Writing Challenge: June
by Foreststar of WindClan
Summary: Her eyes gazed at nothing. Falconwing felt his throat tighten as he stared at her. She was dead, because of him. His heart felt like it was going to burst. He thought vengeance would close the hole inside of him; instead, it only served to widen it.
1. Sleekshine Kills

**Hi guys! I'm back with another story. This is a challenge for ScorchClan, and my entry for the contest. This story has two parts, and is centered around revenge. Also, this story takes place in the old territories, before the Great Journey. So, enjoy!**

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 **IMPORTANT CHARACTERS : _FALCONWING—_** big, broad-shouldered gray-and-white tom with a ruffled pelt and pale amber eyes

 ** _SLEEKSHINE—_** long-furred brown-and-white she-cat with creamy underbelly

 ** _DUSKFOOT—_** long-legged black she-cat with dark brown paws

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 **PART ONE:**

 ** _SLEEKSHINE KILLS_**

Her shriek of pain stirs a murmur of pity within me, but I take it down before it can take me down. I have no choice. She knows too much.

I raise my paw to slam it down on her. Duskfoot rolls out of the way, and I stumble, glaring at her. My fur is bushed to twice its size.

Scrambling away, Duskfoot climbs to her paws, swaying unsteadily on three legs. Her fourth paw is held up above the ground, mangled, a deep bite marking it, and the claws hanging loose. Her face is marred because of me. I don't look her in the eye; I can't do what's necessary if I see my handiwork.

Though I don't actually see it, I know exactly what's there: a long red clawmark running down her face... and through her eye.

* * *

 _My pace quickened. Now I was running, free to do whatever I want. The camp fell away behind me, and the ground flashed beneath my paws. As I ran, I could almost smell my beloved Redfeather's sweet scent, or hear the loud rumble of his voice._

There! _Redfeather, a brave, smart ShadowClan warrior, was sitting at the border, gazing out at Highstones. His warm soft eyes lit up as he saw my approach, and he sprang to his paws lightly, racing to meet me, indifferent to the border that screamed, "Keep out!"_

 _We came to a stop, and he pressed his muzzle into my chest fur. His purrs sent trembles throughout my whole body, and I flicked my tail lightly over his, resting my muzzle on his head._

 _"You're here," he whispered._

 _"Of course," I murmured back. "Loss of sleep is nowhere near strong enough punishment to keep me from seeing you, my love. Nothing is. I would do anything to be with you, even if that means leaving WindClan."_

 _Redfeather said nothing, only wrapped his tail with mine and placed a thick-furred ginger paw over my own. I was perfectly at peace, feeling the touch of his fur against mine, hearing the loud rumbling purr of my dearest one, swaying rhythmically with him on that serene night._

 _At that moment, everything went wrong._

 _It seemed perfect, at first. A cloud drifted across the moon, and the moor was plunged into absolute darkness. Except for one spot. Us._

 _A shaft of moonlight struck our pelts, and Redfeather's fur shone bright as the sun. He was a roaring inferno, his pelt blazing with strength and fire. His eyes reflected the stars, glittering brightly above, easily visible as the clouds broke apart and the moonlight returned to normal._

 _For one brilliant, blinding, breath-taking moment, I thought that this was StarClan's will, for us to be together, no matter the barriers. Why else would they have sent that moment of darkness, with only us in the light?_

 _I thought I had understood the meaning of the sign. I thought it meant that Redfeather and I would be together, forever. Any medicine cat likely would've thought the same. I never realized then it was to serve an entirely different purpose._

 _It was to show Redfeather and I together, me in love with a ShadowClan warrior. It was to show a fellow Clanmate of mine what was happening._

 _Duskfoot._

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I advance toward Duskfoot, my mouth twisted in a snarl. Any sign of pity or mercy within me, and I will never have the strength to kill her.

"Sleekshine, please," Duskfoot begs, blood flowing down her face freely. "You're my friend!"

I hesitate, but only for a moment. _The secret cannot get out,_ I tell myself, to push away my pain at the necessity of this and my conscience. Duskfoot takes this chance to take off across the moor. I growl and leap after her, my paws pounding on the ground. She swerves, and I push harder, desperation racing through me.

 _She's going for a tunnel! I have to stop her!_ Duskfoot was a renowned Tunneler in WindClan, and her fellow Tunnelers claimed she could run through them as fast and easily as aboveground. I, on the other paw, am a Moor Runner. I can't stand crawling through a tunnel, the mud above lying heavy on my mind. If she reaches a tunnel that leads back to camp, then even if I was willing to go into myself, there was no way I would ever to be able to catch up with her. I would lose Redfeather forever, and Adderstar would most likely banish me from WindClan forever. I _did_ attack Duskfoot, after all.

Dirt is kicked up behind me as I sprint toward Duskfoot, determined to stop her. Her black pelt wavers in and out of the shadows, but I'm able to keep a bead on her and stay close. She glances behind her, and her eyes light up with panic as she sees I'm drawing closer.

She redoubles her running, but I'm the Moor Runner. Though she may be extremely skilled at tunneling, I was faster than she was aboveground.

Putting on one last burst of speed, I leap for her and my claws latch themselves onto her pelt. She shrieks, and claws at me, wriggling around in an attempt to escape.

The battle doesn't lost long. It ends with me standing above her, panting, paws pressed firmly on her hip and shoulder, keeping her from running. I readjust so that I can raise a paw, claws unsheathed and glinting in the moonlit night.

"Please, Sleekshine," Duskfoot whispers, gazing up at me with round eyes. Her fur is matted with blood, and her eyes glimmer with pain. "I won't tell. I promise. Just, _please_ , let me go."

I want to let her go, to let her live. But I've done this damage to her. Adderstar would get the truth out of her somehow, and I would be exiled or killed. And Duskfoot would tell Adderstar about Redfeather too, and I would be forbidden to ever set eyes on my wonderful beloved mate.

I have to do this. I have to. I have no choice.

 _This is for Redfeather,_ I tell myself.

When I step off of her body, she is limp, head lolling, eyes blank. And my paws are stained with her blood.

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 **And there's part one! Keep reading to find out where revenge actually comes into play in this story. Tell me your thoughts on it in the reviews!**

 **—Foreststar**


	2. Falconwing's Pain

**I'm back with part two of Dusk Falls! The flashback italicized part was so annoying to write, simply because I could not stay in the past-tense writing. I kept slipping into present-tense! Anyways, onto the story!**

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 **PART TWO:**

 ** _FALCONWING'S PAIN_**

I had expected a fullness inside me. Perhaps a sense of satisfaction, or for triumph to surge through my veins. Instead, I felt hollow inside, as I stared down at my dead Clanmate.

Ever since Sleekshine murdered my sister, Duskfoot, I have been determined to take revenge. Though none of my Clanmates suspected her, I instantly realized the grief in her eyes was not fully genuine. I caught a whiff of her scent in Duskfoot's wounds. I knew she had killed my sister.

Now, a quarter-moon later, I still have that same empty feeling in my heart. When Duskfoot died, my heart tore in two. I thought killing her murderer would heal that hole, or at least appease the pain. It didn't work. Instead, it only served to widen it.

I continue on with my duties, but everything seems pointless. I feel like I shouldn't be allowed to stay in WindClan. I _killed_ a cat. Murdered. Killers don't belong in WindClan. Especially not those who killed for revenge. It's just plain wrong. Not just wrong, _evil_.

I understand why Sleekshine did it. At a Gathering, after Sleekshine's death, Redfeather's secret came out. He and Sleekshine were in love. I realized, after some thinking on my part, that Duskfoot must have seen them together. She would've told Adderstar, and it would be all over for Sleekshine's forbidden relationship. Sleekshine is usually not a killer, and Duskfoot was her friend, but I know that Sleekshine could kill when fighting for something she strongly wanted or believed in. Like Redfeather.

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 _"Sleekshine!" My voice echoed across the moor, as I raced to catch up. The brown-and-white Moor Runner turned, and slowed so I could run by her side._

 _"Hello, Falconwing," she meows cautiously._

 _"Can we stop here for a moment?" I asked, panting. I'm not a Moor Runner. I loved the tunnels, like Duskfoot._

 _"Of course," she answered, coming to a stop. She looks at my curiously. "Do you need something, Falconwing?"_

 _I don't answer right away, as I caught my breath. "Yeah," I gasped. I had running across the moor for a long time, searching for Sleekshine._

 _She waited patiently for me to go on. As the burning in my lungs died away, I took a deep breath and stood up. "Sorry, one moment," I told her, taking a few more deep breaths. Once the pressure has alleviated, I spoke._

 _"I'd like to ask you a question, and I want you answer honestly." Her eyes flashed with wariness, but she nodded._

 _"I will be completely honest," she swore. I gazed at her for a few seconds. Then my eyes drifted to the dying sun. It was dusk now, what Duskfoot was named after. We always used to sit on the Looking Rock, and gaze out at the sky as night fell and the sun vanished beneath the horizon._

 _She turned to look at what I was gazing at when I didn't continue for several seconds. This is my chance. I pounced, my greater weight pinning her to the ground. She yelped in surprise, and I snarled._

 _"What was that for!" Sleekshine growled, trying to escape my grip._

 _I leaned down so my face was close to her's. "Why did you do it?"_

 _"Do what?"_

 _I spat at her. "Why did you kill Duskfoot?"_

 _Sleekshine stared at me, horror and shock flashing through her gaze. "I-I didn't kill Duskfoot!" she stammered._

 _"Oh, yeah?" I snarled. "Then who did? You promised to be completely honest to me, Sleekshine!"_

 _"A dog did!" she cried, trying to reach up and claw me. To my eyes, this was as good as her confession._

 _"Liar," I hissed, and I saw fear fill her eyes. I have no pity or mercy. The fury that has brought me to this point has completely taken over. I did the same thing I saw on Duskfoot. Forever after that, I was worse than Sleekshine. I was angry as a fox, as merciless as a badger, as savage as a dog. I raked my claws over her eye. I mauled her paw. I ripped apart her pelt._

 _And then, for a finishing touch, I tore out her throat._

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Pain clenches my heart. It feels like claws are sinking into it, tearing, ripping. I just barely manage not to yowl out my pain to the sky above. I can't keep this secret anymore! It's ripping me apart from the inside.

I spin and race back to camp, ignoring my patrol's shocked yowls for me to come back. _I can't! I've gone too far!_ My mind races. _I never should've killed Sleekshine! It was wrong! Killing and revenge has no place in WindClan._

I burst into camp, looking around with wide wild eyes. Ignoring the gasps and weird looks from my Clanmates, I bound over it my leader's den, and thrust myself inside. Adderstar spins, staring at me in shock.

"Don't you have a patrol to finish, Falconwing?" he asked, his voice steady despite the surprise that shows in every other thing he does.

I swallow. Now that the time has come, I'm not sure whether or not I can do this. Then the claws squeeze tighter, and I stand straighter. _I must._

Taking a deep breath, just like the one I took before I killed Sleekshine, I say:

"I killed Sleekshine."

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 **Part two: done! Did you like it? Was it stupid or amazing? Tell me in the reviews!**

 **—Foreststar**


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